MIAMI — Brian Gaine believes in the value of being able to recognize potential.

In 1990, the coaching staff at the University of Maine saw that Gaine, a tight end from Pearl River, N.Y., had the skill and later would achieve the size to be a productive Division I football player.

These days, Gaine’s professional reputation rides on on his ability to find players whose talent and mental makeup will enable them to compete at the game’s highest level — the National Football League.

Building off the determination and perseverance learned from his parents and coaching mentors along the way, Gaine has worked his way up through the ranks in the NFL.

Gaine, a longtime scout, was recently promoted to assistant general manager of the Miami Dolphins.

“I’ve been very fortunate at a young age in this business to be surrounded by some great people who have had a great impact in my life and have given me an opportunity to prove myself,” said Gaine, who is enjoying some vacation time before the Dolphins intensify their preseason preparations.
The 39-year-old Gaine lives in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., with his wife, Tricia, and children, Kelsey, 9, Ryan, 5, and Connor, 3.

“I get to be a dad and be around the kids on a daily basis,” Gaine said of his time off. “It’s a chance to let them know I’m around. That’s the challenge of the job is balancing the personal and the professional.”

Gaine, who graduated from the University of Maine in 1995 with a degree in public administration, is entering his 15th NFL season.

As a player, he spent a year each on practice squads with the New York Jets and New York Giants, then in 1998 was cut by the Kansas City Chiefs. The next year, he hooked on with the Jets’ scouting department.

Gaine worked there five years before doing a two-year stint with the Dallas Cowboys. He was hired by Miami as its assistant director of player personnel in 2008 and was promoted to director last year before getting the assistant GM appointment in June.

“We’re trying to be first class in all that we do, try to create a positive influence,” said Gaine, who works directly with Dolphins General Manager Jeff Ireland. “We’re optimistic and encouraged about the future and we’re really excited about coach [Joe] Philbin and his staff.”

Gaine’s rise to front-office prominence in the NFL has been a long, gradual process.

He is the youngest of five brothers born to Irish immigrants Jim and Alice Gaine. His brothers include John, a firefighter in Queens; James, a retired New York City police officer; Patrick, a Bronx firefighter; and Brendan, a businessman in St. Louis who was an assistant football coach at UMaine in 1993.

“We’re a blue-collar family and some of the lessons learned were hard-knocks lessons,” Brian Gaine said. “None [influenced me] more than my dad, watching and learning what it was to work hard. Nothing worth having comes easy and with hard work and dedication, you can achieve a lot of great things in life.”

Gaine was a standout tight end at Don Bosco Prep in Ramsey, N.J. There, he showed promise as a 6-foot-4 200-pounder.

However, he also played basketball and explained his split commitment may have slowed his physical maturation. UMaine, then coached by Kirk Ferentz, believed he had what it took to succeed at the next level.

“The first program that offered me a scholarship was the University of Maine,” Gaine said. “I was happy and willing to accept that offer, because I felt like the program was a good fit for me and how they utilized the tight end in the offense.”

With the help of UMaine’s strength and conditioning coaches, Gaine eventually built himself up to 250 pounds. He was the Black Bears’ rookie of the year in 1992 and finished an injury-shortened career with 74 catches for 719 yards.

Both are UMaine records for a tight end and still stand.

Gaine said he learned a lot of football in Orono, specifically how to handle the physical and emotional rigors of the game and preparing for each week’s opponent.

“I’ve always embraced the grind of football, getting to Saturday or now, Sunday,” he said. “There was a process that took place to get there.”

Beyond the game, what Gaine took from his UMaine experience was the importance of relationships with his teammates, coaches and friends.

The Orono campus provided a remote but unique venue where team members worked hard and competed in the hope of winning on Saturday afternoons.

“Nothing’s accomplished in football until a group of young men come together for a common cause,” Gaine said. “I think you learn a lot about sacrifice and commitment.”

He credited Ferentz, and then Cosgrove, for fostering an atmosphere where those attributes were attained. He said the program continues to produce young men with football talent and character.

“It had such a positive and exceptional influence on me, how it’s shaped my career and whatever level of success that I’ve had,” Gaine said. “You have to work for what you earn. Nothing’s going to be handed to you.”

Gaine said his experiences kept him focused and motivated to pursue a career in scouting and player development. He has continued to master his craft, identifying talented players who will fit Miami’s present and future needs on the football field.

Gaine is quick to point out he has received a lot of help along the way.

One of his mentors included former New York Giants, New England Patriots, New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys coach Bill Parcells, who from 2008-2010 was the executive vice president of football operations for the Dolphins.

Other front-office gurus who have aided Gaine’s development include longtime Pittsburgh Steelers personnel head Dick Haley and Ireland.

“I’ve been surrounded by and learned from a lot of great people at all the places I’ve been,” Gaine said. “I listened more than I spoke in those environments, but they all shaped my career to a degree in my football philosophies.”

He said scouting requires a lot of travel and tremendous personal sacrifice in being away from his family. However, Gaine maintains a passion for evaluating players in the hope of making Miami an AFC power.

“I’ve really never asked for anything in football other than an opportunity,” he said. “Once given an opportunity, my hope is I’ve been able to prove myself every step of the way and earn whatever I’ve gotten in this profession.“

Guy has had a mediocre career. Then again, as I have said frequently, the Jets had no hope of getting the best man for the job, with the idiotic decision to keep Rex Ryan on board. Lets see what he can do in this dysfunctional environment.

Guy has had a mediocre career. Then again, as I have said frequently, the Jets had no hope of getting the best man for the job, with the idiotic decision to keep Rex Ryan on board. Lets see what he can do in this dysfunctional environment.

I was going to post to start looking for Woody' plane within the next 24 hours...

For those that use the "terrible hire, dolphins picks sux, talent sux"...He hasn't been the final decision maker...Again, his scouting reports could be 100% accurate but if the decision makers (Ireland, HC) go with who they want how is that Gaine's fault? Or if the coaching staff sux at developing the players that not the scouts fault

doesnt matter... those are answers you will never know...i feel more secure w a talent guy from a winning program..better odds that person knows what there doing!!!

According to tony Pauline on the draft sight the jets don't want a strong personality at gm. Here's a quote on why things went sour with Tom gamble.

Tony_TFY
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gets worse by the minute...it was told to me the Jets don't "want a strong personality" at the GM position- part of the reason things did not go well with Gamble...it was described to me as a "sh!t show"...

This is the 2nd time I have seen this particular piece of information from Pauline surface.

My question is who is it that supposedly - and I emphasize "supposedly" told Tony Pauline this?

Why would anybody from within the Jets organization disclose any of their insight regarding this process to Pauline? He is not a reporter that regularly covers the Jets.

Assuming that this claim by Pauline is actually true (which I really doubt personally) I don't believe it was anybody that is directly involved in the interviews or the decision making process for hiring the Jets new GM that made that statement - again that's assuming it actually happened.

While they have struggled, the dolphins did exactly what they should have and exactly what we need...they tore down their team and rebuilt it.

They have a QB they believe in, who btw, is a good enough athlete to run the read-option.

They have a great pass rusher in wake and a strong front 7

They have 30+ million in cap space, a first and 2 second round picks, and I believe not a single crushing contract given to a jackass like santonio holmes or a failure like sanchez.

For anyone who thinks the dolphins stink and gaine isnt qualified, you should probably first ask yourself how bad the dolphins really look if they open 2013 with their current team, plus greg jenninges/dwayne bowe, a FA lineman/healthy jake long, and 3 top 50 picks.

And yet... statistically no better than Sanchez was +
There were 3-4 guys selected after Tannehill who you could argue we're better values and played better this year - Wilson, Foles, Cousins, Weedon...

I would be 100% fine with this hire. He is one of the rising star executives in the league currently. People may point out that the Dolphins have not won a significant amount of games recently. While that is accurate, the Dolphins have laid out a solid future for themselves. A franchise QB, with a very solid defense, and multiple draft picks. Sure they may have not won much, but they are certainly in a much better position for the future than we are.

And yet... statistically no better than Sanchez was +
There were 3-4 guys selected after Tannehill who you could argue we're better values and played better this year - Wilson, Foles, Cousins, Weedon...

Except from a pure talent evaluation, Tannehill blows Sanchez out of the water. He will be a very good QB in a year or two in my opinion.

Brian Gaine/Miami Dolphins/Assistant General Manager: Gaine, now in his 15th year in the NFL and fifth with the Dolphins, was promoted to his current role with the team back in June of this year. While his scouting background mainly has come from the pro side (previously with the Jets and Cowboys), the veteran personnel evaluator ramped up his evaluations of college players in recent years based on his recent promotions. His name has come up a bit in conversations over the last few years with various NFL executives as a future GM. And he interviewed for the Rams GM job earlier this year.

This is the 2nd time I have seen this particular piece of information from Pauline surface.

My question is who is it that supposedly - and I emphasize "supposedly" told Tony Pauline this?

Why would anybody from within the Jets organization disclose any of their insight regarding this process to Pauline? He is not a reporter that is regularly involved with the team.

Assuming that this claim by Pauline is actually true (which I really doubt personally) I don't believe it was anybody that is directly involved in the interviews or the decision making process for hiring the Jets new GM that would have disclosed that kind of information to Pauline - again that's assuming it actually happened.

You're more than welcome to go to the draft forum and ask him yourself if you want to. That's the great thing about the draft forum. More people should stop by and contribute.

When Brian Gaine was a practice-squad tight end with the Jets and Giants in the late 1990s, he found himself drawn to certain people in the organization. Surprisingly, none of them were wearing helmets or shoulder pads.

The Pearl River native took an interest in how teams in the NFL were built and their day-to-day operations. Over the last decade, that interest has turned into a career.

"As my career was coming to an end, I got exposed to the detail-oriented environment of both the coaching and also on the personnel and scouting end," Gaine said. "I got to speak to a few of the people involved in that profession, and that really piqued my interest."

Since then, Gaine has become a front-office fast-tracker.

In January, the 35-year-old was hired by the Miami Dolphins as their assistant director of player personnel. He had spent the past three seasons as assistant director of pro scouting with the Dallas Cowboys and six previous years in various scouting and player-development positions with the Jets.

With the Dolphins, Gaine will supervise and direct the pro scouting department and soon will be integrated into the college player evaluations.

Both are crucial positions within any organization, but especially now in Miami.

The Dolphins are coming off a 1-15 season and are in the midst of a roster overhaul, a process Gaine is embracing.

"I've always enjoyed and appreciated the idea of putting a roster and team together," said Gaine, who played at Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.) and the University of Maine. "I enjoy dealing with the roster-management issues, the player acquisitions, the player addition and player evaluations. I like the idea of putting a team together and building a championship roster. Those challenges, I was always interested in that."

Follow the chronology of Gaine's career, and there's an obvious pattern - wherever Bill Parcells goes, so does Gaine.

In his first two years with the Jets, Gaine worked under Parcells as a member of the college scouting department (1999) and as manager of pro player development (2000).

Gaine again was an aide to Parcells in 2005, the year Gaine worked directly with Jeff Ireland, the Cowboys' vice president of college and pro scouting. When Parcells was hired as Miami's vice president of football operations in December, Ireland was brought in as the Dolphins' general manager. Gaine soon followed.

"The opportunity to learn and develop under Bill and Jeff Ireland, it's very much a mentor program," Gaine said. "They definitely take the time to show us how they want to do business. There's a ton to learn, and I have a lot more to learn. It's a tremendous opportunity."

Gaine said his parents, and most of his family, still live in Rockland County, and that he visits often. He's especially close with his cousin, George Gaine, the varsity boys basketball coach at Tappan Zee High School.

They speak often, having what Brian calls "heart-to-heart talks" about the program George is building.

"We have a lot in common in what we're trying to do," Brian said. "We're trying to build championship teams that can sustain success long-term."

Gaine's long-term goals are the same as those of any member of an NFL front office.

"The pinnacle of our profession is to develop and grow to be a general manager in this league," he said. "But right now, I'm concerned with being the best assistant director of player personnel in the National Football League and on winning a championship here in Miami."